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Greenlight Cafe on Koh Samui offer a selection of predominantly organic raw and cooked food, fresh slow-pressed juices and super smoothies for healthy-eating conscious people.
They cater to vegans and vegetarians as well as dishes with free-range chicken and fish lovers. For their coffee they purchase organic green beans from the north of Thailand and roast them onsite 1-2 times a week to offer only the freshest organic coffee.
Phanganist speaks with Kevin who arrived on Samui to live on July 30th 2011 after living for 24 years in Japan.
“I have always been interested in organic farming practices (but had no experience) and everyday ate at organic restaurants”.
What is the concept of Greenlight Cafe?
To create a cafe/restaurant offering as much as possible, organic, healthy food and beverages in a relaxed, chilled atmosphere. 
What is different about your business?
Definitely the vibe of the place. It is a relaxed open-aired space with rustic tables and chairs, a few bean bags, teak furniture next to our swimming pool, a small library, friendly staff, and is surrounded by a lot of greenery.
Right next door is our yoga and dance studio which also 'feeds' the cafe with positive energy brought in by practitioners on the same wavelength. Our water supply comes from a shallow well in the garden and also from rainwater tanks used to catch rainwater.
For electricity, we installed 11 solar panels for experimentation and are planning to increase the number of panels gradually. In front of the cafe we have designed and built our own Trash Recycle Station and separate garbage into 4 different bins (glass, plastic, cans, raw). It is just a small step to raise awareness regarding the garbage problem we all face on Samui.
What is the atmosphere, how do you want people to feel?
We want people to feel relaxed, at home and inspired not only to 'create' change, but to 'be' the change.
What uniqueness does your business bring to Koh Samui?
The fact that we are also the main host to the Samui Green Market held once every six weeks, which again, attracts other 'like-minded' vendors of healthy organic restaurants and shops to gather and share our collective vision for a better planet.
We also host our regular salsa party every Friday night and the Samui Wellness Consultants' Society once a month.
What are your hopes with the Greenlight for the future?
To fine tune the system of Greenlight Cafe and Bar and then hopefully expand to other locations possibly even overseas.
Do you have special offers?
Yes, we offer a huge range of yoga retreats, yoga teacher trainings and detox programs.
What do you enjoy about the island of Koh Samui?
The fact that it has a special 'magic' that attracts such an international, but similarly-minded type of traveller.
And leave us with the Greenlight philosophy…
The overall philosophy of Greenlight Cafe and Bar and Elysia Boutique Resort is to create a physical space where like-minded people who share a similar vision for a healthy, green planet can come together to share, exchange and discuss ideas and potential solutions followed by action in order to create a better world for everyone.
We have over 2,500 books on the Elysia property of which Greenlight is a part to offer resources for people.
Keep up to date with their events on our Koh Samui event listings.
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